Seton Hall Celebrates 2014 Commencement
5/19/2014 12:00:00 AM | General
May 19, 2014
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Seton Hall University celebrated its 157th baccalaureate commencement on Monday, May 19, at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J., and 51 student-athletes walked across the stage as members of the Class of 2014.
The diverse group included 25 female and 26 male student-athletes, representing 13 different states as well as eight foreign nations.
The men's soccer and men's swimming & diving teams each saw seven student-athletes receive their diplomas. All six seniors on from the Pirates' men's basketball squad earned their degrees as did five seniors from the women's soccer program. The baseball, women's basketball, women's golf and women's swimming & diving teams each featured four graduates. Three members of the softball program were also honored as were a pair of representatives from the women's tennis and women's cross country teams respectively. The men's cross country, men's golf and volleyball programs each graduated their only eligible senior.
The ceremony marked the culmination of the academic year for the Seton Hall University Department of Athletics, honoring a group of Pirates that garnered a number of individual and team academic accolades during their time in South Orange.
Graduating on Monday were 21 members of Chi Alpha Sigma, the National Student-Athlete Honor Society, along with 27 recipients of the Seton Hall Academic Merit Award which recognizes seniors who have achieved at least a 3.2 grade-point average (GPA). Together, they been staples on the annual BIG EAST Academic All-Star list and have helped raise the collective GPA among all student-athletes at The Hall to its highest mark ever. The class included Seton Hall Scholar Athletes of the year Hannah Basalone (Brea, Calif.) who as a part of the original recruiting class helped lift the women's golf team to a BIG EAST Championship in just its fourth year of existence and Carl Johnston (Surrey, British Columbia) who helped the men's cross country team take home the 2012-13 BIG EAST Team Excellence Award for boasting the highest GPA in the conference.
Also included in the Class of 2014 was the Pirates' pair of BIG EAST Scholar Athlete of the Year nominees in men's soccer's Kevin Matthews (Ambler, Pa.) and Chloe Sher (Tin Shui Wai, Hong Kong) of women's tennis.
With spring 2014 grades yet to be finalized, eight members of the class graduated Magna Cum Laude, two earned Summa Cum Laude recognition and 11 received Cum Laude honors.
The commencement ceremony capped a 2013-14 academic year in which Seton Hall Athletics unveiled the Charles W. Doehler Academic Center for Excellence and saw five programs earn the NCAA Public Recognition Award for posting a multi-year Academic Progress Rate (APR) in the top-10 percent of their sport. The NCAA award is just one example of a host of team awards that honored the Pirates for their work in the classroom over the past year as various outlets recognized Seton Hall programs as among the top performing teams in the nation.
The women's soccer squad earned National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Team All-Academic accolades and both the men's and women's swimming & diving teams earned College Swim Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Scholar All-America distinction for the 14th consecutive year. Also continuing the tradition of academic prowess was the tennis program, which received the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Team All-Academic Award for the sixth straight year.
| SETON HALL PIRATES CLASS OF 2014 |
| BASEBALL (4) |
| John Beaubien Livingston, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Dillon Hamlin Colts Neck, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Josh Prevost Belle Meade, N.J. Marketing |
| Chris Selden Allenhurst, N.J. Mathematics |
| MEN'S BASKETBALL (6) |
| Patrik Auda Cum Laude Brno, Czech Republic Finance |
| Aaron Geramipoor Manchester, England Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Fuquan Edwin Paterson, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Kevin Lynch Canton, Mass. Sport Management |
| Brian Oliver Glassboro, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Eugene Teague Vineland, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| WOMEN'S BASKETBALL (4) |
| Janee Johnson Matthews, N.C. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Breanna Jones Hampton, Va. Biology |
| Ka-Deidre Simmons Newark, N.J. Broadcast and Visual Media |
| Elaine Swaby Cum Laude Paterson, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY (1) |
| Carl Johnston Summa Cum Laude Surrey, British Columbia Biology |
| WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY (2) |
| Nyala Eddings Cum Laude Chicago, Ill. Finance and Management |
| Kristen May Shrewsbury, Mass. Biology |
| MEN'S GOLF (1) |
| Gary Dunne Wicklow, Ireland Liberal Studies |
| WOMEN'S GOLF (4) |
| Stacie Ballou Cum Laude Staten Island, N.Y. Physics |
| Hannah Basalone Summa Cum Laude Brea, Calif. English |
| Samantha Massei Magna Cum Laude Allen, Texas Public Relations |
| Haley Van Es Granger, Ind. Public Relations |
| MEN'S SOCCER (7) |
| Kevin Bonder Whippany, N.J. Marketing and Management |
| Christian Battistesa Bound Brook, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Chris Garcia Rutherford, N.J. Public Relations |
| Max Garcia Jersey City, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| John Gurel Istanbul, Turkey Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Kevin Matthews Ambler, Pa. Finance |
| George Velasquez Union City, N.J. Broadcast and Visual Media |
| WOMEN'S SOCCER (5) |
| Ashley Clarke Paramus, N.J. Marketing |
| Meghan Hayes Magna Cum Laude Fredon, N.J. Biology |
| Marie Klemme Magna Cum Laude Berlin, Germany Marketing |
| Katie Ritter Magna Cum Laude Hagerstown, Md. Criminal Justice |
| Amie Ruhe Magna Cum Laude Monrovia, Md. Marketing |
| MEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING (7) |
| Matt Benson Overland Park, Kan. Marketing |
| Greg Black Cum Laude Easton, Pa. History and Greek |
| Ian DeLisio Cum Laude Woodstock, N.Y. Finance |
| Evan Forbes Cinnaminson, N.J. Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Joey Lacus Cum Laude Wethersfield, Conn. Graphic and Interactive Design |
| Tyler Naumann Middletown, Conn. Management |
| Jon Ropson McKinney, Texas Sport Management and Finance |
| WOMEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING (4) |
| Kate Dwyer Freehold, N.J. Elementary and Special Education |
| Kerrie Kolackovsky Franklin Square, N.Y. Criminal Justice and Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Kelly Markwell Old Bridge, N.J. Biology |
| Katie Riley Newburgh, N.Y. Nursing |
| SOFTBALL (3) |
| Maria DeLuca Cum Laude Cedar Grove, N.J. Psychology |
| Meredith Henze Cum Laude Elkton, Md. Biology |
| Jen Metzger Magna Cum Laude Pine Hill, N.J. Biology |
| WOMEN'S TENNIS (2) |
| Rocio Portela Magna Cum Laude Demetrio Vega Baja, Puerto Rico Diplomacy and International Relations |
| Chloe Sher Magna Cum Laude Tin Shui Wai, Hong Kong Environmental Studies |
| VOLLEYBALL (1) |
| Alyssa Warren Cum Laude Joliet, Ill. Sport Management and Marketing |
